There are certain foods I am not a huge fan of eating, yet I still appreciate them as an art form because of the skill involved in their creation. Macarons are an example of this (a shocking admission, isn’t it?), as are souffles.

At one place I worked, we made our souffles a la minute. An order would come in, and we would start whipping the egg whites by hand, adding the sugar slowly, then finally incorporating the resulting meringue into a fruit flavoured base. Quantities were ‘eye-balled’, rather than measured, so it was very crucial to make sure you tasted everything before sliding the little perfectly shiny copper pot filled with souffle mix into the hot oven. No matter how many I may have made, I still got great pleasure from seeing the well risen end product swiftly dispatched by the waiter to the dining room.

The most memorable souffle I have ever eaten, was one served to us at Claude’s several years ago. Six of the most perfectly risen souffles arrived simultaneously at the table. We were instructed to make an indent in our souffles with a spoon, though which a waiter then poured a gloriously boozy custard. I ate -every- single last spoonful of it. It was wonderful and warming, and a tremendous way to end a meal.

A good friend recently asked me for help in finding some suitable non-fruit based souffle recipes that she could use. I tried two, which with a bit of luck, ended up being very successful. Both souffles had great lift, were very stable, and were cooked just the way I prefer souffles to be – set around the outside, with a melting texture in the middle.

No recipe today, as I just wanted to share some pictures. It was my first time baking souffles at home, so I was keen to try my hand at photographing them too. The pictures turned out fairly well, even if the whole process was a combination of being a little frantic and hilarious at the same time. And you know what, I tasted them, and think I may be a fan of “certain” souffles after all!